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A safe, stable home can change lives for the better. Here’s how Habitat for Humanity wants to make that possible for everyone.
Better health, better jobs, and a brighter future all start with access to a safe, affordable home.
A single door can open up a world of endless possibilities. For homeowners, the front door of their house is a gateway to financial stability, job security, and better health. Yet for many, that door remains closed. Due to the rising costs of housing, 1 in 3 people around the world wake up without the security of safe, affordable housing.
Since 1976, Habitat for Humanity has made it their mission to unlock and open the door to opportunity for families everywhere, and their efforts have paid off in a big way. Through their work over the past 50 years, more than 65 million people have gained access to new or improved housing, and the movement continues to gain momentum. Since 2011 alone, Habitat for Humanity has expanded access to affordable housing by a hundredfold.
A world where everyone has access to a decent home is becoming a reality, but there’s still much to do. As they celebrate 50 years of building, Habitat for Humanity is inviting people of all backgrounds and talents to be part of what comes next through Let’s Open the Door, a global campaign that builds on this momentum and encourages people everywhere to help expand access to safe, affordable housing for those who need it most. Here’s how the foundation to a better world starts with housing, and how everyone can pitch in to make it happen.
Volunteers raise a wall for the framework of a new home during the first day of building at Habitat for Humanity’s 2025 Carter Work Project. Globally, almost 3 billion people, including 1 in 6 U.S. families, struggle with high costs and other challenges related to housing. A crisis in itself, this also creates larger problems that affect families and communities in unexpected ways. People who lack affordable, stable housing are also more likely to experience financial hardship in other areas of their lives, since a larger share of their income often goes toward rent, utilities, and frequent moves. They are also more likely to experience health problems due to chronic stress or environmental factors, such as mold. Housing insecurity also goes hand-in-hand with unstable employment, since people may need to move further from their jobs or switch jobs altogether to offset the cost of housing.
Affordable homeownership creates a stable foundation for families to thrive, reducing stress and increasing the likelihood for good health and stable employment. Habitat for Humanity builds and repairs homes with individual families, but it also strengthens entire communities as well. The MicroBuild® Initiative, for example, strengthens communities by increasing access to loans for low-income families seeking to build or repair their homes. Habitat ReStore locations provide affordable appliances and building materials to local communities, in addition to creating job and volunteer opportunities that support neighborhood growth.
Marsha and her son pose for a photo while building their future home with Southern Crescent Habitat for Humanity in Georgia. Everyone can play a part in the fight for housing equity and the pursuit of a better world. Over the past 50 years, Habitat for Humanity has become a leader in global housing thanks to an engaged network of volunteers—but you don’t need to be skilled with a hammer to make a meaningful impact. Building an equitable future means calling on a wide range of people and talents.
Here’s how you can get involved in the global housing movement:- Speaking up on social media about the growing housing crisis
- Volunteering on a Habitat for Humanity build in your local community
- Travel and build with Habitat in the U.S. or in one of 60+ countries where we work around the globe
- Join the Let’s Open the Door movement and, when you donate, you can create your own personalized door
- Shop or donate at your local Habitat ReStore
Every action, big and small, drives a global movement toward a better future. A safe home unlocks opportunity for families and communities alike, but it’s volunteers and other supporters, working together with a shared vision, who can open the door for everyone.
Visit habitat.org/open-door to learn more and get involved today.
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‘Let them play’: Longtime teacher says today’s kindergarten standards are out of control
Recess is being replaced with more and more worksheets.
It’s nothing new for parents to lament their kid’s ever-growing list of school requirements. From piles of homework to getting graded for school supplies, the pressures seem to be not only racking up over time, but spreading to younger and younger grades. And it’s not just parents who have noticed the shift.
In a video that continues to spark vital conversation, longtime kindergarten teacher Ms. Kelli, of the TikTok account @the_wondermint, reflected on how different it is for students at even the most introductory level: Kindergarten.
The “trickle-down” effect of academic pressure
We all know how intense the pressure is for high schoolers looking to get into college. Two or three decades ago, SAT tutoring and prep courses were a luxury for wealthy families. Now they’re viewed as essential. But what’s taking parents, and teachers, off guard is how the elevated standards are trickling down to little kids who are barely out of diapers.
In her viral message, Kelli begins, “So I just gotta ask, as a 20-year kindergarten teacher myself, remember when we went to kindergarten that we just had to be potty trained and not eat the glue?” Comparing that to the long list of requirements nowadays, the educator says she feels sorry for families going through it.
“My heart breaks when I see all these videos of what do you need to do to prepare your child for kindergarten, and things your child must know before going to kindergarten, and these lists of things that parents need to be working on.”
One teacher agreed in a recent Reddit thread: “When I first taught Kindergarten in Wisconsin in 2009 the standard was to count to thirty. By 2012, the standard had changed to one hundred.”
Another parent chimed in: “Our kindergarten has them count to 100. Know 40 sight words by the end of kindergarten. Begin teaching reading and phonics … they learned to write their names within the first two weeks and are expected to do that and the date on every assignment. Each week they make a letter book for a different letter but they expected them to go into kindergarten knowing all their letters. They have a math packet every week for take home. … I mean I love it, he’s learning a lot but he does get quite a bit of work. Two packets due a week. So we do a page a night from each so it’s done by Thursday night.”
(Remember, these kids are about five years old. They can barely eat spaghetti without drenching themselves in pasta sauce, and we’re expecting them to sit down and do worksheets!)
Another added, “My son’s school routinely takes away recess. They do it if they don’t get enough school work finished during the day, or if the class misbehaves too much, or one single child can get it taken away. It’s also at the end of the day, so the kids are slaving away learning for six hours before maybe getting a break.”
It’s not just the parents who are noticing, either. A study out of the University of Virginia in 2016 found that kindergarten standards and curriculums at the time were far more similar to first grade curriculums from the previous decade. And the standards have only gotten higher since.
Redefining what “success” looks like for a five-year-old
Kelli says she’s had enough. She argues that, “Human development hasn’t changed. What a five or six-year-old child is physically, mentally and developmentally able to do hasn’t changed, in all these years.”
Still, the standards have changed. And kids are paying the price.
So she encourages fellow teachers and parents to not force the educational aspect.
“The learning will come. The development will come, the ABCs, the one, two, threes, writing, all of it, it will come … Curriculum, it will happen. The learning, it will happen,” she says.
Let the kids be kids
Instead of placing more pressure, Kelli suggests a gentler, simpler approach.
“Let them play, let them socialize with each other. Let them learn to be away from their mommy and daddy and be sad for a little bit and be comforted. Let them find friendships that are gonna make them laugh so hard that their bellies ache and tell stories that go home. Let them create something that they never thought they could. Let them do an art project where they turn a box into a robot and they’re so excited to show their parents!”
Kelli’s video seemed to really resonate with parents and teachers alike, who have definitely felt like certain aspects of childhood have been sacrificed in the name of “productivity.” Especially when it comes to homework.
The comments couldn’t agree more
“Yes! My son struggled in Kindergarten last year and even had homework! I could not believe what all he had to know. Teacher said he had a hard time paying attention… yeah he is 5!” one mom shared.
“Finally someone said it,” added another. “The curriculum is insane for elementary school kiddos. They have absolutely lost their childhood.”
One person noted that “the kindergarten report card used to be things like skipping, walking on a balance beam, the hardest thing was counting to 100.”
As for whether or not a more academic-focused approach to kindergarten is, in fact, less beneficial to kids— a 2019 study in the American Educational Research Journal did find that it led to improvements, both academic and interpersonal, in the long run.
But that doesn’t necessarily mean we need to load them up with a ton of work for after school. Another study reported that elementary school students, on average, are assigned three times the recommended amount of homework.
This is why Kelli created a follow-up video sharing why she doesn’t assign homework to her own students.
“We are covering what we’re covering in the five or six hours with these little babies, and if we can’t cover that in that time, we’re definitely not gonna get the best out of them at 5, 6 o’clock at night when they’re tired and they should be enjoying time with their family,” she said.
She does, however, advocate trying to instill a “love of reading,” if you can count that as homework. But even then, that assignment looks more like snuggling in bed, cozying up with a book, and having their parents read it to them.
Point being: of course school is meant to help set up students for success. But if it robs them of their precious, formative, and oh-so-temporary childhood, then is it really worth it?
This article originally appeared two years ago. It has been updated.
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Retired teachers in their 30s live on cruise ships full-time for a little over $10K a year
“It sounds mad, but the numbers made sense.”
You know that feeling toward the end of a great vacation when you stop and think: I wish I could stay here forever. It might be an all-inclusive resort, a secluded beach, or a fun-filled cruise on the high seas that you just don’t want to leave. Of course, for most people, it’s a fantasy. You can’t just quit your job and live a permanent vacation. But what if you could?
Giving it all up and retiring to live on a cruise ship at 32 seems like a lifestyle choice only available to the ultra-wealthy. However, two financially savvy retired school teachers from Tennessee have managed to do just that, spending under $10,000 for the first eight months at sea.
Falling in love with cruises
Monica Brzoska, 32, and Jorell Conley, 36, met in 2015 while teaching in Memphis, Tennessee. The following year, they booked a week-long cruise to Mexico, Belize, and Grand Cayman. After that, they were hooked on cruising together.
Eight years later, in March 2023, they booked a week-long Caribbean cruise and had the time of their lives. When it was over, instead of returning home to Memphis, they had a wild idea: Why not continue to book consecutive cruises? So, they did just that.
Monica was inspired to start living the life she always wanted after her father fell ill and her mother told her: “Don’t wait for retirement. Follow your dreams.”
How They Made the Numbers Work
The couple crunched the numbers and found that if they chose the cheapest cabins and used the deals and promotions they’d received from Carnival Cruises, they could book the first 8 months for just under $10,000.
That’s not per month. That’s the total, coming out to around $1250 per month. Not a bad deal whatsoever. Plus, the more cruises they book, the more perks and deals they get.
“It sounds mad, but the numbers made sense. Accommodation, food and entertainment would be included – we’d only need spending money,” Brzoska “And because we’d been on so many Carnival cruises, we’d earned access to some amazing offers.”
Hopping from ship to ship isn’t difficult for the couple because many disembark from the same ports. But they sometimes have to fly when they can’t walk to the next ocean liner.
Cruising toward retirement
The couple then quit their jobs, sold their possessions, and started a new life on the high seas. They rent out their 3-bedroom home in Memphis to maintain steady cash flow. The average 3-bedroom home in the area rents somewhere between $1200 to $1900 a month.
Over the first year of their new life, the couple completed 36 consecutive cruises.
They have already visited countless destinations across the globe, but they can’t choose a favorite. “For a cultural experience, we loved Japan,” Brzoska told a Carnival Cruise director on Instagram. The couple also loved Greece for its “history” and Iceland because it was the “closest to being on Mars.”
More recently, they’ve spent time in Amsterdam, the UK, Germany, Belgium, and more. What an amazing adventure.
One of the most incredible benefits of living on a cruise ship is that so many things are taken care of for you. The couple never has to cook any meals, do any laundry, or drive. Every night, there is something to do, whether it’s checking out a comedy show or enjoying drinks and dancing in the nightclub. Plus, there are always new friends to meet on board with every new cruise.
Plus, on cruises, just about all the costs are covered, so you rarely have to open your wallet. It’s a stress-free, all-inclusive lifestyle. Brzoska says that when you remove the everyday stresses from life, it’s great for your marriage. “Without the daily stresses of life, we rarely argued, but always told each other if we needed space or more time together,” she said.
They are not the only ones
Brzoska and Conley were one of the first high-profile couples to get attention, followers, and media coverage for the permanent cruising lifestyle, but they’re definitely not the only ones. It’s an especially popular choice for retired adults and seniors, who find it cheaper and way more fun than living in a retirement community or nursing home. It’s also a great choice for people who can work remotely and flexibly, or who own their own digital-nomad-friendly businesses.
The couple also makes sure to have one date night a week, during which they dress up and have a nice meal together.
The couple has been cruising full-time for more than two years, logging 106+ cruises and visiting over 45 countries as of this and counting. Absolutely unreal.
Most people may be unable to give it all up and live their lives hopping from ocean liner to ocean liner. But there’s a great lesson in the story of Brzoska and Conley: You never know how much time you have left, so don’t wait for retirement to live the life of your dreams.
This article originally appeared two years ago. It has been updated.
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Someone criticized this teacher’s out-of-the-box lessons. Her comeback was an A+.
Never insult a teacher unless you plan on using proper grammar.
Being a teacher isn’t easy. Teaching middle school students is especially not easy. Teaching middle school students who spent several of their formative years going through a global pandemic in the age of smartphones, social media and a youth mental health crisis is downright heroic.
If you haven’t spent time in a middle school classroom lately, you may not fully grasp the intensity of it on every level, from the awkwardness to the body odor to the delightful hilarity that tweens bring to the table. When you connect with your students, it can be incredibly rewarding, and when you don’t…well, we all read “Lord of the Flies,” right?
Skilled teachers bring out the best in young people, and that can be done in many different ways. In fact, this new generation of students requires out-of-the-box thinking and new ideas to keep them engaged in the learning process.
Teacher Amy Allen makes middle school fun
For Amy Allen, it’s all about making her middle school classroom a fun, welcoming place to learn and by bonding with her students. For Allen, fun and welcoming comes before anything else.
“I love teaching middle schoolers because they are awkward, and I’m awkward, so we get along,” Allen tells Upworthy.
She plays games with students, gets rambunctious with them and creates opportunities for them to expend some of that intense pre-and-early-teen energy in healthy ways. For instance, she shared a video of a game of “grudgeball,” an active trivia game that makes reviewing for a quiz or test fun and competitive, and you can see how high-energy her classroom is:
“I think for teachers, we always want to create moments for our students that are beyond the standard reading, writing, memorizing, quiz, ‘traditional learning,’” Allen says. “Games are a great way to incorporate fun in the classroom.”
Allen clearly enjoyed the game as much as her students—”I love the chaos!” she says— and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. Fun keeps teachers sane, too.
Allen shares tons of classroom and teacher content on her TikTok page, where she’s accrued 15,000 followers and more than a million likes. Most of them admire her as a dedicated educator.
Most of them.
Then a troll showed up in the comments
Recently, one person took issue with Allen’s silly and raucous classroom behavior and commented, “your a teacher act like it.” (Not my typo—that’s exactly what the person wrote, only with no period.)
Allen, never one to shy away from public criticism on her social media, addressed the comment in another video in the most perfect way possible—by acting exactly like a teacher.
Watch as she eviscerates the anonymous commenter’s poor spelling, grammar, and punctuation.
There are two solid ways to handle a rude comment without making things worse—you can ignore it or you can craft a response that makes the person look like a fool without being cruel or rude yourself. Allen’s grammar lesson response was A+ work, right down to the “Come see me if you have any further questions” caption.
Teacher-mode, activated.
Free lesson: Don’t mess with Ms. Allen
In fact, the person apparently went back and deleted their comment after the comeback video went viral, which makes it all the more hilarious. Allen’s video currently has more than 4 million views on TikTok and over 18 million views on YouTube.
“What’s funny is I left my correction on the board accidentally, and the next day, students asked me what that was all about,” Allen says. “When I explained it, they thought it was cool because ‘why would anyone go after Ms. Allen’? At that point, the video had maybe 10,000 views. I never imagined the video would go viral.”
Two days later, as the video was creeping toward a million views, she upped the stakes. “Some of my students are my ultimate hype people, and they were tracking it harder than I was,” she says.
“I made a ‘deal’ with my fifth period if it reached 1 million during their class, they could sit wherever they wanted the entire week.
“During lunch, I checked, and it reached 1 million. So when they came back from recess, I announced it, and it was like I was a rockstar. They screamed and cheered for me. It was an incredible moment for me.”
The comments showed lots of love
Allen’s followers, and many more people beyond that, loved her response:
“You’re an amazing teacher. (Did I do it right???)”
“Well, I appreciate you acting like a teacher… love it…”
“I love this clap-back! Look at you “acting” like a teacher!”
The irony, of course, is that Allen was acting like a teacher in her grudgeball video—an engaged teacher with engaged students who are actively participating in the learning process. Just because it doesn’t look like serious study doesn’t mean it’s not learning, and for some kids, this kind of activity might be far more effective at helping them remember things they’ve learned (in this case, vocabulary words) than less energetic ways of reviewing.
Allen has her thumb on the pulse of her students and goes out of her way to meet them where they are. Last year, for instance, she created a “mental health day” for her students. “I could tell they were getting burnt out from all the state tests, regular homework, and personal life extracurricular activities that many of my students participate in,” she says. “We went to my school library for ‘fireside reading,’ solved a murder mystery, built blanket forts, watched the World Cup, colored, and completed sudokus. Is it part of the curriculum? No. Is it worth spending one class period doing something mentally rewarding for students? Absolutely.”
Why ‘fun’ in the classroom is serious business
Teaching middle school requires a lot of different skills, but perhaps the most important one is to connect with students, partly because it’s far easier to teach someone who actually wants to be in your classroom and partly because effective teaching is about so much more than just academics. A teacher might be the most caring, stable, trustworthy adult in some students’ lives. What looks like silly fun and games in a classroom can actually help students feel safe and welcomed and valued, knowing that a teacher cares enough to try to make learning as enjoyable as possible. Plus, shared laughter in a classroom helps build a community of engaged learners, which is exactly what a classroom should be.
Keep up the awesome work, Ms. Allen, both in the classroom and in the comment section.
You can follow Amy Allen on TikTok and YouTube.
This article originally appeared two years ago. It has been updated.
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Gen X is trying to come to grips with getting ‘old.’ It’s not going well.
We are NOT prepared for Salt-N-Pepa to be played in the doctor’s office waiting room, thankyouverymuch.
The thing about Gen X being in our 40s and 50s now is that we were never supposed to get “old.” Like, we’re the cool, aloof grunge generation of young tech geniuses. Most of the giants that everyone uses every day—Google, Amazon, YouTube—came from Gen X. Our generation is both “Friends” and “The Office.” We are, like, relevant, dammit.
And also, our backs hurt, we need reading glasses, our kids are in college and how in the name of Jennifer Aniston‘s skincare regimen did we get here?
It’s weird to reach the stage when there’s no doubt that you aren’t young anymore. Not that Gen X is old (50 is the new 30, you know) but we’re definitely not young. And it seems like every day there’s something new that comes along to shove that fact right in our faces. When did hair start growing out of that spot? Why do I suddenly hate driving at night? Why is this restaurant so loud? Does that skin on my arm look…crepey?
As they so often do, Penn and Kim Holderness from The Holderness Family have captured the Gen X existential crisis in a video that has us both nodding a long and laughing out loud. Salt-n-Pepa in the waiting room at the doctor’s office? Uh, no. That’s a line we are not ready to cross yet. Nirvana being played on the Classic Rock station? Nope, not prepared for that, either.
Watch:
Hoo boy, the denial is real, isn’t it? We grew up on “Choose Your Own Adventure” books, for goodness sake, and it’s starting to feel like we made a wrong choice a chapter or two back and suddenly landed our entire generation in a time warp. This isn’t real, is it? Thirty years ago was the 1970s. That’s just a Gen X fact. So what if we’ve lived long enough for our high school fashions to go out of style and then back into style and then back out of style again?
Seriously, though, we can either lament our age and stage in life or we can laugh about it, and people are grateful to the Holdernesses for assisting with the latter. Gen X fans are also thrilled to see their own experiences being validated, because at this point, we’ve all had that moment in the grocery store or the waiting room when one of our jams came on and we immediately went into a panic.
A woman shopping at a grocery store. Photo credit: Canva Fellow Gen Xers commiserate in the comments:
“They were playing The Cure in the grocery store and I almost started crying. I mean, how ‘alternative’ can you be if you’re being played in Krogers? You guys are great! Thanks for making us laugh.”
“When I turn on the classic rock station I expect the Doors or CCR not Soundgarden or Nirvana.”
“I couldn’t believe it when I heard Bohemian Rhapsody being played in Walmart. That was edgy in my day.”
“I know!!! Bon Jovi at the grocery store!!! That was my clue in!!”
“That horrifying feeling when I realized that when I play Nevermind for my kids now in 2024, I’m playing them 33-year-old music, but when my dad played the Let It Be for me in 1984, it was only 14-year-old music.”
“The first time I heard my jams on the oldies station I cried. I’m not old! I just have to take a picture of something to blow it up so I can see it better with my readers but everyone does that. Early dinners? Hey I’m hungry by 5 why wait.”
“Long live Gen Xers! We have to be strong!! We can get through this together!! #NKOTBmeetsAARP“
Hang in there, Gen X. We didn’t build up all that resilience and attitude in our youth just to fall apart at this point. Let’s own this stage like we invented it and make it as cool as we are.
You can find more from the Holderness Family on their Facebook page, their podcast and their website, theholdernessfamily.com.
This article originally appeared two years ago. It has been updated.
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Dad records a touching ‘goodnight’ moment with his daughter. But then she smelled his breath.
She didn’t hold back.
Have kids, they said. It’ll be great, they said. Well, one dad may have a bone to pick with those mysterious “they,” in that colloquial saying. A man running the Instagram account Havea_676, posted a video that has parents on the internet not only laughing at his tender moment turned embarrassing, but also sharing their own savage kid moments.
The dad was having a sweet moment with his daughter, asking her about her day and what she was excited about for the next day, before tucking her into bed. Things appeared to be going well, and his daughter, who is off camera, can be heard answering all of the questions. But at some point during the father-daughter moment, the little girl was over the many questions the man was asking.
A little girl reading to her dad. Photo credit: Canva “Daddy, can you please stop with your questions? I’m trying to sleep, and also your breath stinks,” the little girl reveals.
Yikes. Dad didn’t have much to say after that bombshell. He simply readjusts so his mouth isn’t pointing in her direction and says, “goodnight, I love you.” There went that sweet moment being caught on video, but after uploading the unexpected roast session, the dad was joined by fellow parents, commiserating. So what seemed like a sad parenting fail, was actually a great bonding moment for parents.
“Kids are brutally honest with no filter. I was helping my daughter button her shirt one morning, and I asked her if she brushed her teeth. She said yes… then there was an awkward pause before she frowned and said ‘did you? Cuz it don’t smell like it’ Needless to say I don’t help the lil heffa get dressed for school anymore lol,” one mom says.
“Kids know how to cut deep with one slice!! Haha,” someone else writes.
“I came home yesterday and asked my daughter if she missed me…She said NO with her whole chest,” another commenter reveals.
“That was so honest for her to say that, and I love the way dad handled the situation. Their bond will live forever,” a commenter wrote. “Well at least you know she’ll be honest at school…she sounds like an amazing little girl,” another added.
Kids are just brutally honest until they get a bit older to realize there are gentler ways to deliver news. Hopefully, unless they skip that stage and become some rather challenging adults to deal with. But if this dad learned one thing from his lengthy conversation, it’s to brush your teeth before goodnight chats so you don’t melt your kid’s face off.
This article originally appeared two years ago. It has been updated.
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15 pop song ‘oopsies’ that were kept in recordings, turning mistakes into iconic moments
Who knew there were so many “happy accidents” in famous songs?
“There are no mistakes, only happy accidents,” Bob Ross assured us. In the case of over a dozen popular songs, mistakes didn’t just turn out to be happy accidents, but ultimately became iconic moments in music.
Musician and teacher David Hartley compiled 15 examples of mistakes in well-known songs that you can’t unhear once you know about them. Most will be familiar to pop music fans, who may or may not know that they were actually unintentional.
Hartley’s video goes into the details of these 15 song elements that weren’t supposed to be there:
1. The alarm clock ringing in The Beatles’ ‘A Day in the Life’
Hartley shares that The Beatles had an alarm clock placed on the piano to keep track of time in the studio. It just happened to go off while they were recording the bars that separate the two sections of the song, and the ringing couldn’t be removed afterward. It fit perfectly with the “Woke up, fell out of bed” lyrics, however, so it seemed intentional.
2. Elvis Presley laughing while singing “Are You Lonesome Tonight”
While performing his hit “Are You Lonesome Tonight” live in Las Vegas in 1969, Elvis saw a bald man in the audience lose his toupee. The singer spontaneously changed the line “Do you gaze at your doorstep and wish I was there?” to “Do you gaze at your bald head and wish you had hair?” He laughed at his own hilarity and kept chuckling through the rest of the song. The recording made it onto one of his live albums.
3. The ‘I know, I know, I know, I know…’ section of ‘Ain’t No Sunshine’
“In 1971, Bill Withers was recording his debut album, which included the song ‘Ain’t No Sunshine,’” says Hartley. “When he got to the bridge section in the middle, he realized that he hadn’t written any lyrics, so he just repeated ‘I know’ 26 times.” Other musicians encouraged him to keep it, and the song became a huge hit.
4. The phone ringing at the end of David Bowie’s ‘Life on Mars’
“Unfortunately, right by the side of the piano, there was a toilet, and in that toilet was a public phone,” explained sound engineer Ken Scott. “Someone got a wrong number and called in halfway through that great take, and we had to stop it, and Ronaldo was cursing and swearing about it.” They didn’t realize until they put the whole song together that the ring and Ronaldo’s voice had made it in.
5. That one-off piano chord that kicks off Elton John’s ‘Bennie and the Jets’
When Elton sat down to record the song, he played the opening chord on its own on a whim. Producer Gus Dudgeon thought it sounded like something a pianist would do warming up for a live performance, so they decided to make the song sound like a live performance, even though it wasn’t, adding in crowd sound recordings.
6. Two unintentional sounds in the segue into Pink Floyd’s ‘Wish You Were Here’
Pink Floyd did something unusual in between songs on the album Wish You Were Here. In the segue into the title track, they inserted radio sounds that were actually recorded while the band was scrolling through stations in lead guitarist David Gilmour’s car.
“We can hear a brief section from Tchaikovsky’s fourth symphony and an extract from a radio play that to this day nobody knows what it is,” says Hartley. A cough from Gilmour also slipped in, which resulted in an urban legend that the recording prompted him to quit smoking. (He has said he was never a smoker.)
7. Steely Dan’s drummer’s uncharacteristic mistake with the sticks that fit the song perfectly
Steely Dan is apparently known for being meticulous about their recordings, so the fact that an unintentional click of drummer Steve Gadd’s drumsticks made it into the studio recording of “Aja” is quite remarkable. The timing of the click made it sound seamless, though, so why redo it?
8. A bad piano chord in the intro to ‘Roxanne’ and the laughter that followed
“The timing and the way it resolves to the G minor chord that they’re playing makes it sound like it was intentional,” says Hartley. “But as Sting explains, it happened by pure accident.” There was an open piano next to him and he leaned on it to rest and accidentally played that chord, which made him laugh.
9. The gated reverb drum sound that was accidentally created on Peter Gabriel’s song, ‘Intruder’
Hartley says the iconic ’80s drum sound, where the drumbeat sounds big and echoey and then cuts off abruptly, was created accidentally by Steve Lillywhite, Hugh Padgham, and Phil Collins when recording “Intruder.” Phil Collins ended up showcasing the gated reverb drum in “In the Air Tonight” the following year.
10. Two different lyrics sung at the same time in The Who’s ‘Eminence’
“For the first line of the first chorus, Pete Townsend and Roger Daltry sing something slightly different,” Hartley shares. “One of them sings ‘behind an eminence front’ and the other sings ‘it’s an eminence front,’ meaning they are one syllable out from each other.” The mistake was initially left in the recording, but was corrected years later.
11. Billy Joel fumbling a lyric and laughing in ‘You’re Only Human’
People familiar with the song may remember when Joel seems to stutter, “S-s-sometimes that’s all it takes” and then laughs. That was a genuine stumbling mistake, but it fit so well with the song’s theme and other lines (like “it’s alright, you’re supposed to make mistakes”) he was convinced to leave it in.
12. Perfectionist Prince allowing a track recording oopsie to remain
During the recording of the song “Forever in My Life,” the tape was misaligned by one bar while recording the final track, which made the backing vocal preempt the lead vocal. Prince ultimately liked the effect, so he left it that way.
13. The ‘Where do we go now’ lyrics at the end of ‘Sweet Child O’ Mine’
“It was suggested that at the end of the song, after the guitar solo, they add a breakdown to finish the song,” Hartley explains. “But when it came to recording, lead singer Axel Rose didn’t have any lyrics, and he didn’t know where the song would end up. So the line, ‘Where do we go now?’ is a genuine question to his bandmates.”
14. Christina Aguilera’s ‘Don’t look at me’ line in ‘Beautiful’
Hartley shares that the recording of “Beautiful” was actually just supposed to be a demo vocal, and you can hear various imperfections in it if you listen closely with headphones. And the spoken line, “Don’t look at me,” was a real instruction to her friend just before she started singing.
15. The extra ‘My life is brilliant’ at the beginning of James Blunt’s ‘You’re Beautiful’
Blunt simply came in too early with the opening lyric, so he ended up repeating the line. They could have easily taken it out, but decided to leave it.
Mistakes or happy accidents, it’s fun to see how unintentional oopsies can turn into iconic moments when you decide to roll with it.
You can follow David Hartley on YouTube for more interesting music content.
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Millennials are ditching ‘boring grey’ for this joyful mid-century color
Just a few tweaks can bring this look into every bathroom.
Everything old is pink again, to paraphrase a famous adage. This applies even in bathrooms. Neutral colors have ruled the interior design of powder rooms for quite some time. But some Millennials (and Gen X-ers too) are ready to swap the greys and tans for vintage pops of mid-century pinks, yellows, and bright greens.
While of course Millennials had their own brand of pink (which has been popular since around 2016,) they did often flock to neutral colors, perhaps for a sense of serenity. But as is the case for all generations, it can be fun to dabble back into the vintage pool.
Where did these bright colors come from?
In the piece “The Retro ‘50s Pink Bathroom is Back and Designers are Giving it a Deluxe New Twist,” Contributing Lifestyle Reporter Wendy Rose Gould shares the history of the design. “Pink bathrooms are an icon of mid-century Americana, rising in popularity from the 1940s through the 1960s. Pam Kueber, founder of the original ‘Save the Pink Bathrooms’ website (now called Retro Renovation), writes that pink was the single-most popular color for bathrooms in the 1950s. And that an estimated 5 million pink bathrooms went into the 20+ million homes built in the United States from 1946 to 1966.”
The “Save the Pink Bathrooms” movement Gould is referring to was the brainchild of Kueber, who felt that builders and designers were getting rid of historical mid-century design too quickly. On her site, Kueber claims that, like other fans of the style, they were concerned that “original vintage pink bathrooms were being ripped out of post-war American homes way too hastily.”
This of course didn’t just apply to bathrooms. The site, as previously mentioned, became Retro Renovation. It gives all kinds of tips on how to bring kitchens, bedrooms, and dining rooms restored to a long, lost era.
Adding a modern twist
But back to those bathrooms, the vintage color pops are coming back swiftly. In a piece for Better Homes and Gardens, E-design Consultant Maria Sabella shares that as is the case with most resurgences of old designs, there can be a modern twist. “When you think of retro bathrooms, chances are you picture floral print wallpapers and salmon pink tiles. While these iconic features are making an updated comeback (spoiler alert!), experts say nostalgic decor classics are returning in a more stylish form.”
She quotes design expert Daniel Siegel, who gives excellent tips on how to pair the old with the new. “When paired with clean lines, thoughtful lighting, and modern details, these retro touches feel timeless rather than trendy.”
Retro wallpaper patterns
While not everyone can re-tile a bathroom, especially renters or those who don’t have tons of remodeling money laying around, there are super easy ways to grab the vibe.
Wallpaper is one simple way to jump on the retro train. The article shares designer Thecla Glueck’s thoughts on the trend. “Layered thoughtfully, retro and vintage-inspired patterns bring intimacy and warmth, transforming the bathroom into a cocooning retreat rather than a purely functional environment.” She even adds specific patterns, noting, “Checkerboard in classic black and white marble or jewel-tone checks, small geometric shapes such as penny rounds or hexagon, pastel mosaics, floral, or softly faceted subway, are returning with a more restrained, contemporary lens.”
Easy ways to bring in the look
Skirted sinks are also an easy way to bring back the mid-century flair. In another quote, Glueck explains how useful these can be. “They discreetly conceal storage and reinforce the idea of the bathroom as a thoughtfully designed room, not just a utilitarian space.”
Oval mirrors are mentioned as well, as something that can be mixed and matched into a room without commitment. The same goes for accessories like tissue boxes and perfume caddies. Pinks, buttery yellows, greens, and blues can all be mixed and matched to create a more vibrant feel without spending too much money.
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‘MIT Monk’ shares his VIBE method for choosing the perfect adult hobby
Hobbies matter more than ever. Here’s how to pick one that’s meaningful to you.
A survey found that about 15% of adults have no hobbies to speak of. The same survey found that people overwhelmingly agree that having hobbies is important, and also, that they wish they had more time for them.
Anecdotally, those numbers feel low. It’s rare to find someone juggling career, a household, kids, pets, family, and friends who still manages to spend time daily in the woodshop or quietly crocheting.
“MIT Monk” says hobbies matter more than ever
Hobbies still exist, of course, but we have less time for them. Another study found that time spent on socializing, hobbies, and offline activities has decreased over the last few decades while time spent on TV and phones has shot up.
That’s a trend that severely needs reversing. It’s a simple calculus. Doing real things is good for your brain. Screens are not.
“The most successful people fiercely protect their seemingly useless hobbies,” says Sandeep Swadia. “That’s their best defense against brainrot.”
Swadia goes by “MIT Monk” on YouTube, a reference to his time spent both in Himalayan monk training and receiving his MBA from one of the world’s most prestigious Ivy Leagues. He’s also a technology executive and investor, so he meets a lot of high-performing people. His unique background makes him not only an expert in “success,” but also in inner peace and happiness.
Swadia says all of smartest people he meets have at least one frivolous hobby that they make time for. And not just CEOS and billionaires, but Nobel Prize winners too.
Perhaps even more importantly, hobbies are fun. They bring us joy, satisfaction, and a sense of accomplishment that’s difficult to recreate on an app or a website. Plus, they’re great for our health.
But a lot of people simply don’t know where to start when looking to take up a new hobby, even if they’re willing to make the time and put in the effort.
The “VIBE” framework for choosing the perfect hobby
Swadia says you don’t have to just hope you have a passion for something. A hobby can actually be a way to improve your life in the very specific ways that it’s lacking.
But you have to pick the right hobby for you. And Swadia says in order to pick the right hobby, you need a framework. He calls his VIBE.
Vitality
“Are you running on empty? Then pick a hobby that gets your heart rate up,” he says.
It can be fitness and exercise directly, as in implementing a workout routine at the gym or taking a group fitness class. Or you can enjoy active hobbies that have a physical side effect, like hiking.
Vitality hobbies are something fun, challenging, and non-digital to do, and they have the added benefit of improving your physical health and energy levels.
A running club is a perfect hobby that checks multiple boxes. Photo Credit: Canva Photos Inquiry
“Are you easily bored? Then pick a hobby that forces you to be a beginner again.”
Swadia suggests learning a new language, picking up chess, or taking a formal class on just about anything. Crucially, being a beginner as an adult requires courage. It requires you to fail and face your shortcomings head on. But that’s exactly why being a beginner again is so powerful.
“Your brain doesn’t adapt or grow when you’re comfortable,” Swadia says. “A hobby allows you to struggle, to be surprised. It forces your brain to upgrade.”
Chess will make you feel like a humbled beginner, and that’s the point. Photo Credit: Canva Photos Belonging
If you have a lot of acquaintances and distant friends, you may need to find activities that help you find deeper connections in your community.
“Try a hobby that weaves you into a tribe,” Swadia advises.
Anything group-centered works here: a book club, a running group, volunteering, etc. Anything that’s fun, challenging, interesting, or meaningful that you do specifically with other people will bond you to them in surprising and profound ways.
Expression
“Do you consume more than create? Then try a hobby that pulls something from inside of you and puts it out into the world.”
These are the classics: creating and the arts. Woodworking, painting, photography, pottery. Even cooking can be a form of self-expression.
You don’t need to be good at something in order to use it to express yourself. And getting better slowly over time is a huge part of the fun.
You don’t have to be good at art to express yourself through it. Photo Credit: Canva Photos You don’t need one hobby per category, Swadia reminds us. Many hobbies can fill multiple needs at once. Joining a running club, for example, can improve your vitality and your sense of belonging all at once. Depending on your starting point, it can also make you feel like a total beginner (Inquiry) again.
It’s hard to go wrong when picking a hobby
VIBE is just one framework, and it can help you identify what’s missing from your life and figure out how a new activity can challenge you and make you feel more whole.
Psychology Today notes, however, that hobbies don’t have to be challenging or designed to stimulate and rewire your brain. They can also be mindless and relaxing, like coloring or reading “trashy” novels.
More important than picking the right or perfect hobby is picking one at all. Unless there are huge costs involved, you can always try something else down the road if the first one doesn’t work out. What matters is taking care of yourself in order to be at your best.
“Our 24/7 culture tells us hobbies are selfish. They’re extra. It’s time stolen from work or the people that need you,” Swadia says. “Nothing could be further from the truth.”
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